Now is the Time for Digital Marketing

In this article, we talk about digital marketing, explore recent events and tell you why a strong digital presence is becoming more and more important with each passing day. 

People have Shifted their Spending Online.

The COVID-19 pandemic proved to us that you cannot afford to neglect digital sales channels any longer. The data was clear: during the pandemic, people shifted their shopping online. While many assumed this shift would be temporary, Google Search interest revealed that many consumers have transformed for good. Businesses that have not adapted to this new digital norm are struggling to survive. 

Those that delayed digital transformation took a massive hit. In-store traffic dropped in response to health code mandates and individuals stayed home to reduce their exposure. Conversely, those that leaned into digital transformation benefitted from the increase in users spending more time online and shifting their in-store purchases to eCommerce. 

There’s a Recession Looming.

Economists have been warning for years that a recession looms following the pandemic, soaring inflation and interest rate hikes. Cash flow is a critical element of business that is often neglected. How will your business survive a recession? Do you have enough saved to pay your team through an economic slowdown? Or will your marketing efforts need to carry you through the lull? If your strategy is the latter, now is the time to drive marketing and secure sales. Businesses that can invest in improving their digital presence now, have a better chance of making it through a recession. 

Your Competitors are Paying for Ads.

Over the past two years, we have noticed a massive shift towards paid advertising. Your competitors are investing in digital marketing, and more often than not they are targeting your branded searches. Have you ever entered your business name in search and noticed your competitor’s name comes up first? These savvy marketers are stealing your branded search results and your customers. 

Above we see how LeafFilter is providing a permanent solution for annual gutter cleaning and targeting a well-known service provider’s keywords – very sneaky! We see new competitors entering the paid advertising space on social networks as well. 

Your Website Needs to Work for You.

Gone are the days of “set it and forget it” when it comes to web development. Digital standards are evolving and users’ expectations are higher than ever. Your competition is always gaining ground: adding new features, improving website performance and pushing your results further down search results pages. Your website needs to provide a better user experience than your competitors and you need to be driving more traffic to your website.  

Is Organic SEO Your Best Approach to Drive Immediate Traffic?

Probably not, however, you can no longer afford to completely neglect organic SEO. Your website needs to be optimized to rank in search engines. It also needs to be accessible to all audiences and speedy to capture conversions. Finally, you need to be creating content to answer the questions your audience is entering into Search Engines. Unless you have an established website with high domain authority, chances are good you’re not going to rank for your industry’s typical product and service keywords (“outdoor paint“, “house painting“). You need to be creative and create blog posts and help articles that answer your audience’s search queries (“How often does a house need to be painted?“). Tools like Answer the Public help you identify these queries and structure your blog posts. We are happy to assist with competitive audits to provide you with blog topics or content writing services.

Blog posts and help articles are the most practical approach for you to drive organic traffic to your website. While organic SEO can be a cost-effective approach, it is also a long-term approach. It will not get results overnight, however, you should see results if you post consistently and your articles are relevant to your audience. 

Is Paid Digital Marketing your Best Approach to Drive Results Now?

Paid Marketing is your best chance at driving results RIGHT NOW. Digital marketing and web development teams work together to create conversion-optimized campaigns that drive users to conversion-optimized landing pages. A conversion rate of 1-3% is common for this type of traffic, however, some campaigns result in conversion rates of over 20%. 

Should you take a Hybrid Approach to Digital Marketing?

The answer to this question is typically you should do it you can afford to do it. You would likely benefit from a hybrid digital marketing approach if you are looking to increase the leads and sales from your website. Digital marketing is a big investment of time and effort. If you are not measuring your conversion results, you are likely wasting time and money. Have your website developer help you set up conversion tracking prior to commencing your marketing efforts.

Digital Marketing Questions? We Can Help!

We love to help with Digital Strategy and Digital Marketing! Read about our monthly digital marketing program here or contact us today for online advertising help!